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Reflections on the Sangha, Ordination, and the Importance of Tanomu
When I think about the sangha, the image that comes to mind is a picture on a calendar that I saw in my mother in law’s house in Japan many years ago. My mother-in-law was a follower of Jodo Shinshu, and she always had a calendar on her wall that had images and quotes relating to Buddhism. The one that I remember particularly well had a picture of a bamboo grove, with lots of small green bamboo, growing side by side, each apparently separate. Underneath the picture there was a short quote, written in Japanese. The meaning of this was something like: people are like bamboo. We appear separate, but we are linked in ways we cannot see.
To explain: bamboo appears to grow in separate shoots, but beneath the ground, all the shoots are linked. We cannot see these links, but they are there. In a similar way, we human beings think of ourselves as separate individuals, but in fact we are linked in ways that we do not always see and may not be aware of. And these linkages are important.
I think of our sangha as being something like this - a group of people who are connected and sustained in the light of Amida Buddha and the Buddha dharma. Much of the time we may think of ourselves as completely separate, and we may not even meet very often, but we share a deep connection. For me, the Tokudo ordination training, which I completed in Japan in July 2019, was an occasion when I became very aware of this.
Tokudo ordination is a very intensive program which takes place over 11 days. It involves a lot of study, memorization, and learning very specific ways to move, sit, and participate in services. It also involves long days, rising at 5.30am most days, with lights out at 11, with few breaks. It is demanding physically, mentally, and emotionally.
One of the things that was emphasized to us in Tokudo was the importance of looking out for and caring for each other and making sure the people around us were ok. This applied in every aspect of daily life, from helping each other with studying and memorization, to cleaning the center every morning, and preparing for the services. We were divided into small groups, and tasks set, such as cleaning, or conducting services, were the responsibility of the group as a whole. Our actions had a clear effect on others. For example, at mealtimes, no one could begin to eat until everyone was seated. So, if you were late, that would affect everyone. If your group’s room was not tidy, you would all be told that you had to tidy it better and sent to your room to put it right.
But there was a real sense of being cared for and guided throughout. Whenever I struggled personally, I always knew that those around me would make sure I was ok. At the same time, I was gently pushed and guided to do what was needed. The nenju or fan held wrongly, a forgotten bow, a mistake in chanting – all these were patiently corrected, sometimes by teachers, sometimes by a whispered word or gesture from another student.
So, Tokudo encouraged an awareness of others, and cooperation as a group: a willingness to ask for help when we needed it, and to offer help to others when we could see they needed help and support.
This relates to a word that you often hear in Japanese: “tanomu”. This is used in daily life when we are asking someone to do something to help us and can express the idea “I’m counting on you” or “I’m relying on you”. In the dictionary, it is translated as both to ask and to entrust. Sometimes we hesitate to ask for help, often because we feel we should do things by ourselves. But Shin Buddhism teaches us that it is important to be able to acknowledge when we need help, and to have the humility to ask for it.
Shin Buddhism guides us to recognize our own limitations, and to entrust ourselves to Amida Buddha’s compassion, and to the workings of Amida’s vow. The word tanomu is used in this sense in the Ryōgemon, written by Rennyo shōnin, when he refers to “the thought moment of entrusting” – tanomu ichinen no toki. In the Ryōgemon, tanomu refers to entrusting ourselves to the vow, to the compassion of Amida Buddha. This is the heart of our teaching. But in our connections with others, and in the support and compassion of the sangha, and of the people around us, perhaps we can also experience the compassion of Amida, and the workings of the vow.
Namo Amida Butsu.
In Gassho
Rev. Louella Kaishin Matsunaga
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